Se ROOT BA ERIE UR EI AGP ET RS, SEIN EP EE TEER TON PTT EY SOT IST AEA COM RE | Wednesday, August 8, 1990 — North Shore News - 19 Arachnophobia creepy but not too funny Arachnophobia ** (Hollywood) Rated Mature (at the P) «a, Richport, Station $q., Willowbrook and Varsity cinemas) LL RIGHT folks — it’s time to arachno-roll! This movie is about spiders. Not the itsy-bitsy one that crawls up your water spout, but terrifying, eight-legged monstrosities that make you sweat bullets. In the Jennings family, the elected spider wrangler is Molly (Harley Jane Kozak). Her husband Ross Jeff Daniels) is a general practitioner who can’t even deal with spider mites since being traumatized as a child. Looking for a healthier environment to raise books Ey their children, the Jennings desert San Francisco tor rustic Canaima, California. Bad move. Very bad move. Say what you will about the urban jungle, one bonus is the rarity of nature’s little vampire. Unbeknownst to the doctor, his barn has been subiet. This new resident is a not-so-small and ex- tremely lethal visitor from Venezuela that hitched a ride in its victim's coffin. Like a sailor on shore leave, the arachnid mingles with its fellow locals and before long there’s an New books explore nature attempted to delve into as many of the new crop of guide and interpretive books as possible, but it looks as though it’s time for yet another foray. Here then, in brief, are some more ways to enjoy the bounty of the wilds. The long-awaited follow-up to fastern Birding By Ear from the audio-visual Peterson’s Field Guides series is finally alighting in B.C. bookstores. Western Birding By Ear (Thomas Allen & Son; $55) utilizes the same approach as its predecessor, combining guidebook and audio cassettes to introduce bird-lovers to an ex- tremely effective (and simple) system of identifying birds by sound. The first two cassettes and side A of number three deal with western birds by vocal group (harsh; whistlers; trillers and so on) while side B of the last cassette groups them by habitat — where they're mast likely to be encountered (marshes, coastal forest, chap- paral, etc.). Western Birding By Ear, written and compiled by Richard K. Walton and Robert W. Lawson, is logical and csy to use. But just remember, in case you're considering buying it for ° yourself, that the joy of giving doesn’t rule out the sneaky satisfaction of borrowing fater. Identifying flowering plants in the out-of-doors can be a challenging experience, but there are two new comprehensive guidebooks designed to make the task a great deal easier. Wildflowers and Weeds (Pren- tice-Hall; 144 pp.; $17.95) does not seem like a particularly substantial book at first glance, but this field guide is packed with over 650 full-color photographs of wild | N SEVERAL columns I’ve MIKE STEELE book review flora complemented by the clear, concise descriptions of authors Booth Courtenay and James H. Zimmerman. While the geographical area covered by this text is th.’ of cen- tral and eastern North America, a surprisingly large number of the plants described also occur in Western Canada, making this a valuable tool for inquisitive, local naturalists. The same can be said of East- ern/Central Medicinal Plants (Thomas Allen & Son; 366 pp.; $22.95), yet another revised addi- tion to the Peterson Field Guide roster by Steven Foster and James Duke. Medicinal Plants explores more than 500 wild-growing medicinal herbs, noting their use in folk, native and mainstream medical remedies. Although it avoids judgmental statements on the ef- ficacy of some of the therapeutic applications claimed, it does warn readers of the poisonous proper- ties of plants, where applicable. It’s amazing how we seem to forget that much of what grows around us is not only edible but downright tasty. Allan Hall tells us what to look for, when and where to find it, and, perhaps best of all, how to make a meal of it in The Wild Food Trailguide (Owl/ Fitzhenry & Whiteside; 230 pp.; $12.95). Wild garlic, cattail flour, arrow- head ‘potatoes,’ gallberry tea and milkweed salad are just some of the seasonal treats presented in The Wild Food Trailguide. MONDAY NIGHTS ARE PASTA NIGBT : ONLY AT PALERMO’S plus garlic bread Dine-in only. Mon. to Thurs. saturday Sunday Any Pasta Dish Meat, Mushroom or 9 White Clam Sauce H.OOam-1130pm LOQam 22300m 5.00pm-.00am 5.00pm 1030pm 926-2891 1746 Marine Dr. West Vancouver “. film review equally fatal domestic version. As their population swells, so does Canaima’s cemetery. I's interesting that the film was marketed originally as a ‘‘Thrill- omedy,”’ then as a John Goodman laugh-fest, and then as a pure scream machine. It doesn't suc- ceed on any of those levels. The characters are either routine (the disbelieving citizens, the bright- eyed expert) or colorless (the leads). Roseanne’s John Good- man, playing an environmentally conscious bug killer, offers most of the laughs, but his role is quite small. There’s even been comparnsons to fright classics such as Jaws or The Birds, but Arachnophobia doesn't get beyand its own web af occasional surprises and mild humor, . Young Einstein *** (Warner Home Video) Rated Mature Bet you didn’t know Albert Eins- tein was Australian, developed E=mc2 to split beer atoms and was the father of rock ‘n’ roll. Yahoo Serious did and made a comedy that was a box office smash Down Under, but fizzled over here. After a rocky slapstick begin- ing, the star’s charm begins to ex- ert itself when he leaves home (a Tasmanian apple orchard) to pat- ent his formula on the mainland (Sydney). Along the way he en- counters young and lovely scien- tist Marie Curie (Odile Le Clezio) and sneaky rival Preston Preston {ohn Howard). and sneaky rival Preston Preston tfohn Howard). There’s a wonderful innocence running throughout the movie. Prostitutes debate advanced phys- ics with the concierge of Sydney's dingiest “hotel.” The — barbaric chef of a lunatic asylum plops kit- tens into a pie shell. (Don't worry, humanitarian Albert interrupts the kitty-cat pie.) Young Einstein is a beautifully photographed, light-hearted summer rental. NORTH SHORE VIEWS West Van Odeon: Die Hard 2, Problem Child, Young Guns {} Park Royal: ‘resumed Innocent, The jungle Book, Days of Thunder Park & Tilford: Problem Child, Ford Fairlane, Navy Seals, The Last Winter, Die Hard 2, Young Guns ll, Milo and Otis Showtime Hotline: Famous Players 681-4255, Cineplex Odeon 687- Symphony by the Seashore at Ambleside. This summer, the VSO is going to be out and about, all over the Lower Mainland. So pack up the family, the blanket, the picnic basket, the lawn chairs and the beach umbrella and go to the Symphony, Join us at Ambleside Park and enjoy symphonic music on a breezy _ summer's evening. Bring the whole family to this scenic seaside without going formal. park and let the music of Brahms and Sibelius take you back...while you lie back! sso) Sponsored by: imperial Oil Districts of West Vancouver and North Vancouver, The City SUNDAY, AUGUST 12 AMBLESIDE PARK WEST VANCOUVER 7:00 PM ADMISSION FREE Blankets and lawn chairs are recommended. Enter at the concert to win a trip for two to Helsinki courtesy of Finnair of North Vancouver and the many business organizations on the North Shore. Summer Season Sponsors: MOLSON (4) @bctv Shall we picnic on 8 bright Summer's or other fabulous prizes. For more information, call 876-3434. “he nostunyoucanhave with Yourshoesoft;